​28 student enrolled in ELED 360: K-8 Social Science Methods course in the fall of 2017 created visual arts that reflect their view of veterans. This project taught future teachers how to teach about wars from a human perspective and how to integrate arts with social studies. The theme of this art event was: "Through My Eyes".

We were honored that the University of South Dakota Student Veteran Resource Center joined us at this year's event. Student veterans contributed five pieces of artwork to the exhibition.

There were 34 pieces of artwork in total (the instructor made one, too). The artwork were exhibited and silent auctioned on October 12, 2017. All proceeds were donated to the VFW post 3061 in Vermillion, South Dakota, to aid the its missions in supporting education and disabled veterans.

Artwork Display

USD junior Alex Coker already has a plan for his students someday when he becomes an elementary teacher. Inspired by the art show charity project he and his classmates just completed in USD Elementary Education class K-8 Social Science Methods, Coker is hoping to replicate the project for his own fifth graders someday. “After going through the process for the event, I can see how I could incorporate this into a 5th grade classroom,” he said. “I really think this would be a great project for kids. It’s inspiring for anyone of any age. I can’t believe the artwork we created! And the best part is that it all goes to a good cause. I’m definitely going to do this!” Artwork created by Coker and the 27 other students in the education class led by USD Professor Jing Williams was displayed last Thursday, Oct. 12, at the MUC. During the art show, a silent auction to benefit VFW Post 3061 was held, raising more than $900 for the organization. “We consider Thursday’s event a great success,” said Williams, who has executed this art show fundraiser for Post 3061 in two previous classes. “We had people coming in from the beginning till the end. It was especially interesting to see people bidding against each other for certain pieces of artwork. The purpose of this event is to increase the public’s awareness of veterans’ sacrifices and contribution to society, and we believe our event has achieved that goal.” “Our post is very appreciative of Dr. Willliams’ collaborative efforts to bring awareness to the service of veterans. We enjoy working closely with her and we are energized by her enthusiasm,” said Andy Howe, Post 3061 quartermaster. “Her work is intended to bring a human perspective to the veterans’ service. … Each year, the students are finding and showing new ways to express patriotism and honor to those who have served.” This year’s art show theme was “Through My Eyes,” for which each student in Williams’ class created a piece of art reflecting his or her view on America’s veterans. “Many students personalized their own work by having their family members in mind while creating their art. … Students took great pride in their art,” Williams said. “It shows their creativity and ownership. This year, four members from the USD Student Veterans Resource Center also created powerful artwork through their eyes. Their artwork was also exhibited during the event.” Students in the class created many different pieces of art, utilizing string art, poster art, pottery, woodworking, collage, photography, and more. “These were teaching students, not art students, so I was very impressed by the quality of the artwork. … I was the winning bidder on one of the silent auction submissions. It’s very nice,” Howe said. “None of us are artists,” laughs Kennedy Zahnley, a student in Williams’ class, whose who art creation incorporated gift boxes into a unique patriotism display. “It was fun to see all of the different things we created and to know we could create such good projects.” Teaching students that such projects are within their reach is one of the purposes of the assignment, admits Williams. “I love this art project in my social studies classroom not only because it teaches my future teachers how to be creative in teaching, but also because it engages them in learning at a deeper level and it brings the best out of each student,” she said. “My students do not treat this project as another assignment that they have to complete. Instead, they try to personalize their own artwork. When they created their art, they had a family member or a friend in mind, so every little thing on their art became a symbol, which represented something bigger.” One piece created this year in particular touched all of the students in the class. The piece was a flag made of out of painted horseshoes. The student created the piece with her father – a Cold War era vet and cowboy -- in mind. “When she presented her artwork in class, she became emotional while talking about her art and her father,” explains Williams. “She lost her father in May to cancer. Her art represented her father. Therefore, she didn’t want to sell it. She put a high price on it, hoping that nobody would take it. Her story touched everyone in the class. “The next day, one student came to my office and told me that she had emailed the class, and they decided no matter who bid on that horseshoes flag, the whole class would buy it back! Towards the end of the show, one gentleman bid on it. … The class put a higher bid on it in the end, and each person in class contributed $5 to keep that horseshoes flag,” she said. “Of course, the student who created it didn’t know anything about it. She was under the impression that it was sold until the following Tuesday, when the class surprised her with her artwork. She was moved to tears.” Evoking such emotion out of her students through an assignment – and helping them to tap into the people behind the social studies concepts that they teach – is another purpose of this project, said Williams. “I work with future elementary school social studies teachers and teach them how to effectively teach social studies,” she said. “There are three important aspects of this art project. First, this art project is an extension of my teaching unit ‘Teach About Wars from A Human Perspective.’ History seems full of wars, and when it comes to teaching about wars, there are so many things we can talk about in class. “However, often times, I feel some teachers leave the most important component of wars out, that is, the people who actually fought in wars. … Teaching about wars from a human perspective can easily help students make a personal connection to wars, as most of our students have veterans in their families, or they may have friends who are veterans,” Williams said. “Second, art has a magic power in improving our learning. As you can see, this project integrated visual arts with social studies education. Art gives us a unique way to express our thoughts and feelings. The arts support social studies education in several ways: motivating students through ownership and creativity, and learning of social studies content by producing authentic artifacts. Third, this project strengthens the relationship between USD and the local community. Students become active participants and they make a real difference in the local community.”The $900 raised through the students’ art show will help Post 3061 fund its own patriotism outreach programs, said Howe. “We use donations for our community service projects, primarily those focusing on patriotism such as the Voice of Democracy and Patriot’s Pen contests,” he said. “These particular donations will be used first for our USD related projects.” Williams is already planning her next art project assignment to benefit Post 3061, which will take place in a spring education class. “For my next project, I will bring back “In Flanders Fields”, because that theme goes along with the Memorial Day in May,” she said. “The VFW post 3061 will continue providing poppy flowers for us to incorporate into the artwork.”Next spring, Williams is considering expanding the art exhibit and silent auction into a week-long event. “I realized that some people who came to our art event this time were in a hurry, because they came out during their lunch hour and had to go back to work,” she said. “Several people told me they admired my students’ awesome art but only wished they had more time to view it. I plan to extend this event to a whole-week next time, so people can come in and see the artwork at their convenience.”